Arsenal need someone reliable alongside Aaron Ramsey and other key tactics

Matt Jones - Editor 19:50 25/04/2018
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  • Aaron Ramsey

    The glamour tie of the Europa League semi-finals pits the young stallion against the old bull as Diego Simeone’s Atletico Madrid go up against Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal for a place in the Europa League final.

    It’s a chance for Wenger – who announced earlier this month that he will leave the club after 22 years at the end of the season – to end his tenure in north London on a high by winning a maiden European trophy.

    Simeone, meanwhile, will want to lift a sixth title in his seven-year spell with Los Rojiblancos – the first of which was victory in this competition in his debut 2011/12 campaign.

    Here are some of the key tactical talking points ahead of the encounter …

    BOTH COACHES FACING DEFENSIVE FRAGILITIES

    It’s no secret that Arsenal are a mess defensively, with Atletico favourites to progress to a second Europa League final in seven years – especially with the second leg being played in Spain.

    But Arsenal should be buoyed by the form of their opponents coming into this encounter. Madrid’s sole victory in their last five games was the 3-0 win against relegation-threatened Levante earlier this month, but they have since been thrashed 3-0 by mid-table Real Sociedad.

    A 0-0 draw in their last game against Real Betis all-but confirmed Barcelona as La Liga champions, while despite their march to the semi-finals, they did drop a tense second leg tie 1-0 to Sporting Lisbon to see Simeone’s side scrape through 2-1 on aggregate.

    Of course, Arsenal have their own problems, with Wenger’s side conceding 46 Premier League goals this season – one less than 13th-placed Brighton.

    The big issue for the outgoing Frenchman is that Arsenal can’t seem to function as a unit in his favoured 4-2-3-1 formation. With Shkodran Mustafi in woeful form and bringing Laurent Koscielny down to his level and Hector Bellerin regressing massively this term, they’ve been badly exposed on many occasions.

    FBL-ESP-LIGA-LEVANTE-ATLETICO

    WILL ARSENAL GIVE WENGER A FOND FAREWELL?

    What a tumultuous season it has been for Arsenal. On course for their worst league finish in the Premier League era, woefully off the pace of the top sides, and finally set to say goodbye to the manager who has been integral to their success over the last two decades.

    The Gunners have though saved their best for Europe, blowing away CSKA Moscow in the first leg of the quarter-final and impressive home and away wins over AC Milan showing the old Arsenal are in there somewhere.

    The shock loss to Ostersund and the second-leg wobble versus CSKA, however, prove the deep malaise Wenger has allowed to creep in during the latter years of his tenure meaning there are issues for his replacement to address.

    With the Gunners misfiring in the league once again and certainties to miss out on the top-four for a second successive year, the team at least have the chance to send Wenger off into the sunset in a blaze of glory with a maiden European trophy.

    He’s a man who has been such a pioneer for the club and European football as a whole during his career, producing teams and players that have thrilled audiences the world over. Does the veteran showman have one more magic trick left to conjure?

    Wenger1

    CAN BOTH TEAMS KEEP UP THEIR PROLIFIC EUROPEAN SCORING RECORD?

    Atletico are renowned for their usually stout defence, but it is in attack that they have flourished this season in Europe. They have scored 15 goals in their six knockout games since dropping down from the Champions League, with 13 of those coming in sound 5-1 and 8-1 aggregate thrashings of Copenhagen and Lokamotiv Moscow respectively in the last 16 and quarter-finals.

    The Gunners, meanwhile, are certainly living up to their nickname, as they’ve been on fire in the Europa League, launching themselves to the top of the charts with a tournament-leading 29 goals – three more than next highest scorers Lazio.

    Defensively they’re a shambles and are always likely to concede, of course, but Europe has been something of a safe haven for the Londoners, with 16 different scorers finding the net. The likes of Danny Welbeck and Alexandre Lacazette have used it as a platform to stand out in otherwise disappointing seasons domestically.

    With Arsenal’s frailties at the back combined with Atletico coming into the contest in less than stellar form defensively, it all points to a promising two-legged tie that could provide plenty of goals.

     Arsenal v AC Milan - UEFA Europa League Round of 16: Second Leg

    WHO DOES WENGER PICK ALONGSIDE RAMSEY?

    In the midst of a demoralising season for his club, Aaron Ramsey is enjoying a wonderful campaign personally. The Welshman has scored eight goals and provided two assists in his last nine appearances in all competitions.

    The conundrum for Wenger is who does he call upon to throw into the trenches alongside ‘Rambo’ in what will be a war against Atletico?

    In one sense, the combative Granit Xhaka is ideally suited to this sort of attritional fixture, yet can he be truly trusted in the pressure cooker environment of a tight and tense semi-final?

    The Swiss is a powderkeg player who could either explode at any minute or let his side down with a lapse of concentration, yet the likelihood, however, is that he’ll have to play, with Wenger light on footsoldiers.

    Jack Wilshere was ruled out against West Ham with injury, Mesut Ozil was unavailable due to illness, while Mohamed Elneny (who has completed more passes in the Europa League this season, 710, than anyone else) was stretchered off in the first half.

    Promising youngster Ainsley Maitland-Niles came on to replace Elneny against the Hammers, but with few other options in central midfield, Wenger will be eager for good news on Wilshere and Ozil before Thursday’s game as he looks to combat an awesome Atleti engine room.

    Ramsey

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